1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a foot retaining device for inversion exerciser, and more particularly to a foot retaining device for inversion exerciser having a safety lock device to safely lock feet of users.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various kinds of typical body inversion suspension exercise devices or exercisers for straightening spinal column have been developed and comprise a back rest rotatably or pivotally attached to a supporting structure, to support users, and to allow the users to conduct inversion or suspension exercises, or to allow the users to straighten their spinal columns.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,660 to Chen discloses one of the typical exercisers for straightening spinal column, comprising a base and a cushion rotatably or pivotally attached to a support to support users thereon, and a foot retaining device attached to the base, to attach or secure the feet of the users to the base, and to prevent the users from being disengaged from the base, and thus to allow the users to conduct inversion or suspension exercises, or to straighten their spinal columns.
While conducting the inversion or suspension exercises, the users may be supported up-side-down, and may have their feet arranged above their bodies, and may thus have their weight mainly supported by the foot retaining device, such that the feet of the users are thus required to be safely locked to the base with the foot retaining device.
However, the foot retaining device of the typical inversion exercisers do not provide a secondary safety lock that will engage automatically by force of gravity when the user is inverted.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,551,937 to Kwo discloses one of the typical body inversion suspension exercise devices comprising a leg pressing rod adjustably attached to the back rest which is rotatably or pivotally attached to a supporting structure, to support the users, and a leg pressing rod attached to the back rest, to secure the feet of the users to the back rest. In addition, Kwo further provide a retaining ring pivotally attached to a height adjusting rod of the back rest, to selectively hook and secure an operating rod to the height adjusting rod, and to prevent the operating rod from being moved or rotated away from the height adjusting rod.
However, the users may have to bow their bodies, in order to rotate and engage the retaining ring onto the operating rod, and to anchor or secure the operating rod to the height adjusting rod. It is thus inconvenient for the users to engage onto and to disengage the retaining ring from the operating rod, particularly when the feet of the users are suspended above their bodies, or while the users are conducting the inversion or suspension exercises.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional foot retaining devices for inversion exercisers.